The 2022 Alba Series is set to get underway with the Gifford Road Race on Saturday, which will feature a strong field including the distinctive UCI Continental outfit Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling, who join the best Scottish teams in East Lothian.

Gifford was the last Alba Series race back in March 2020, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, so it’s fantastic to welcome back the spring classic onto the Scottish race calendar. Organised by Phil Darby and Edinburgh RC, the race will be ridden over nine laps of the sporting course, which will see the 65 riders tackle 120km in total.

Scottish National Road Race champion David Duggan will be representing the #SCNatChamps bands, while 2019 Alba Series winner Cameron Richardson (RT23) will be looking to start the defence of his series title with a strong ride.

That pair will face stiff competition from the Ribble Weldtite team though, who boast Scottish pair Finn Crockett (who finished second in 2020) and Stuart Balfour among their seven-man squad, and will be aiming to build upon their promising debuts in the Netherlands last week.

James Jobber, now riding for UCI Continental team Kuwait Pro Cycling, already has a week-long stage race under his belt in the Saudi Tour, and will want to better his fifth-place finish in the event two years ago.

Development squads Spokes RT and The Cycling Academy will lead of charge of younger riders that will animate the racing, and they will be joined by stalwarts of the domestic scene Dooley’s Cycles, RT23, Vanelli-Project GO and Wheelbase CabTech-Castelli, who will no doubt all have a part to play in the outcome.

The racing for the A Race will start at 1:30pm Saturday, while there will be a support race for Category 3/4 male riders and all female riders that starts at 10:30am.

You can see the start list here and further details here